Just like last week, I'm starting out this set of covers with the Cardigans.

1. Tom Jones & The Cardigans: Burning Down the House (Talking Heads)
Can't stop listening to this. Tom Jones' voice is actually perfect for the song, and Nina Persson oozes cool like nobody since Debbie Harry. So fun. An all-time great cover--it honors the original instead of competing with it, even while creating something that feels totally new. Much cooler even than the Postmodern Jukebox version of This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody). I do have one more recent Talking Heads cover that can compete, but I'll save it for next week.

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2. The Housemartins: Caravan of Love (Isley, Jasper, Isley)
John Lennon can stick "Imagine" in his pipe and smoke it. This song is 100% more likely to bring world peace, guaranteed. Requisite trivia: Bassist Norman Cook would gain world fame as Fatboy Slim. Singer Paul Heaton has since done solo work, but his best stuff was with the Beautiful South--a band I adore and which, while we're on the subject, put out nice covers of the Mamas & the Papas' Dream a Little Dream and You're the One That I Want from Grease.

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3. Blondfire: We Want the Airwaves (The Ramones)
It takes cajones to cover the Ramones! Blondfire doesn't go hard, though. The Ramones weren't just loud, they were simple, and Blondfire's stripped down ethereal cover follows that spirit, even if it changes the feeling. Similar to Blondfire's acoustic version of their own hit L-L-Love (from back when it was still a brother-sister act).

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4. Echo and the Bunnymen: People are Strange (The Doors)
Recorded for the soundtrack of The Lost Boys, this cover became a minor hit in its own right. It doesn't stray far from the source, which is often true of Echo and the Bunnymen's less well-known covers, like the Rolling Stones' Paint it Black. I think their It's All Over Now Baby Blue is the best example of them making it their own.

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5. Brendan Perry: Song to the Siren (Tim Buckley)
Probably my all-time favorite voice. This cover was a highlight for me of the 2012 Dead Can Dance tour. In this clip you can see Robin Guthrie of the Cocteau Twins playing. He and Elizabeth Fraser created the classic This Mortal Coil version. It may be fair to say Brendan Perry is covering that version, as opposed to the original Buckley version. I could listen to all three on a loop forever and be content. Not quite reaching the same heights are versions by Sinead O'Connor, George Michael, Robert Plant, Bryan Ferry, The Czars, John Frusciante, and many others.

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